Dwarka lynching over ‘cow slaughter’: Police were at spot but accused left without giving names

While arrests have been made in the alleged cow slaughter case, no arrest has been made in the murder-assault case. The Indian Express accessed the FIR filed in connection with the former case. It states that police received a tip-off from a man about alleged cow slaughter at 2.10 am.

“Ct Ravinder… reached Main Jhatikra Road where a group of 15-20 men from Delhi ‘Gau Rakshak Dal’ were present. Towards the right side of the main gate, we found the heads of two-three cows and other remains,” alleges the FIR, lodged on the complaint of a police officer in Dwarka.

The FIR names six men who were beaten up by the ‘gau rakshaks’. The FIR states that four of the men — Mohd Arshad, Mohd Shanu, Santosh and Rajaram — were injured and taken to RTRM hospital by the police. Police claimed they found two pick-up vans outside the farmhouse and collected the animal carcass for post-mortem and further examination.

The FIR reveals that the men involved in the assault left despite police being present at the spot. It states: “There were eight cows and two calves at the spot. These were taken to a safe gaushala. After this, the members of ‘Gau Rakshak Dal’ left without giving their names…”

When contacted, one of the eyewitnesses in the case, Sumant Ojha, who had made the PCR call about the alleged cow slaughter, claimed, “I am an animal rights activist. On Sunday night, I received information about a Bolero truck that was being used to carry beef. I only had a rough idea about the address and the number of the truck. I reached Chhawla and started looking for men who were involved in cow slaughter. After midnight, I found men inside a farmhouse killing cows. I called the police but they came 30-40 minutes late. This was also because we all didn’t have a clear address. I then saw 10-15 men come and beat up the men inside the farmhouse. Later, the police arrived and I left for home. The next day, I saw the news and found out about the man’s death. It’s tragic…”

A senior police officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “We received the call around 2.10 am. There’s not much staff around that time. Three-four police personnel went to the spot and found the men injured. There were also 10-15 locals. Since the priority was the injured, the staff decided to take them to the hospital and then conduct an investigation. The team helped the injured persons and took them to RTRM. We also collected cow carcasses. Meanwhile, the accused, who were in larger numbers, left.”

DCP (Dwarka) Shankar Choudhary said, “Soon after the FIRs were lodged, we formed teams to investigate the matter. Teams have been sent to Delhi-NCR and other states to nab the accused. We will arrest them soon.”

Rajaram worked at the farmhouse and also sold milk to villagers nearby, his family said. They denied allegations of cow slaughter and said he was targeted “by locals” for no reason.

The second FIR in the case, lodged by Md Shanu, stated that he and his friend worked with Rajaram before and were paid around Rs 500-1,000. They were inside the farmhouse when a group of men, who identified themselves as “gau rakshaks”, broke into the house, the FIR states. The complainant further alleged that the men questioned them and beat them up. The police came later, stopped the fight and took the injured men to the hospital, where Rajaram died during treatment.